Homeless in Anaheim have a place to put their belongings

ANAHEIM – Kristalle Randall spends most days performing part-time custodial work at the Grand Californian Hotel and Spa, the most luxurious hotel at the Disney Resort.

After a recent shift, the 42-year-old picked up some clothing, sleeping bags and a tent that she stored inside a locked container across the street from La Palma Park, a popular gathering spot for Anaheim’s homeless population.

That night, Randall, her disabled husband and their two sons – ages 10 and 12 – huddled together and slept in a nearby alley.

Randall said she would have to lug her belongings to work if it weren’t for the new storage service provided by Mercy House.

“People think that if you work at Disneyland or live in Orange County, then you can afford to make a decent living,” said Randall, who became homeless four months ago. “That’s not true. My boys try to keep up our spirits by laughing and joking, but I know that they're about to cry because it’s so tough.”

Mercy House, a homeless support agency, was recently awarded a $52,150 contract by the Anaheim City Council to launch a six-month pilot program that allows transients to secure their belongings for up to a week.

The free service allows homeless people to drop off their life's possessions, freeing them to look for a job or a home or access services elsewhere in the region without having to carry everything along.

“It helps them with a level of confidence and security in knowing that they don't have to carry all of their belongings into a job interview or a shelter,” said Larry Haynes, executive director of Mercy House.

“We also want to build trust for the folks living at La Palma Park so we can connect them with services,” Haynes said. “Hopefully, we're creating a space that can improve the quality of life for homeless people and return the park to its original, intended use.”

The Anaheim Poverty Task Force counted 447 homeless people living in the city in January during the daytime, 80 of whom were camped out at La Palma Park.

On Tuesday, the City Council will consider an anti-camping ordinance that would keep homeless people from sleeping on city streets and parks any time of the day. If approved, violators would be fined $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense committed within a year and $500 for each subsequent violation within a year.

The proposed city law would also allow police to confiscate the belongings of homeless people and store them for up to 90 days.

For now, sleeping in parks is not a crime in Anaheim, but police regularly cite people who violate a city law that prohibits anyone from being in the park between 10:30 p.m. and 5 a.m.

Mercy House employees, like Dennis Stephenson, help homeless people carry their personal items into a pair of 20-foot-long cargo containers kept behind a fenced area.

“I can relate with a lot of the people around here,” said Stephenson, a 48-year-old recovering methamphetamine addict who regularly slept at La Palma Park until he moved into an apartment in Orange several months ago.

“I just hope that through this process I will be able to show them that there is a better way to live,” Stephenson said. “I'm living proof that you don't have to live like this anymore.”